Lucchesi’s quality run began long before Monday
Notes on Machado, Yates, Renfroe, Hosmer
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Bill Center, longtime sportswriter for U-T San Diego, is an employee of the Padres.
Joey Lucchesi’s scoreless, seven-inning outing Monday night provided far more to the Padres than a desperately needed break for the dangerously over-worked bullpen.
It was yet another sign that the 26-year-old left-hander with the funky delivery and the lethal “churve” is rounding into a quality Major League starter.
Monday was the deepest that Lucchesi has ever taken a shutout into a game. It also marked the third time this season that the Southeast Missouri State product completed seven innings this season. And the Padres needed Lucchesi to go seven innings Monday night against one of the National League’s top offensive teams.
Over his last seven starts, Lucchesi has a 3-2 record (and the Padres are 5-2) with a 2.76 earned run average and a 0.803 WHIP. He has allowed 13 runs on 23 hits and 11 walks with 43 strikeouts in 42 1/3 innings. Four of those seven outings were ranked as quality starts.
Footnote: Monday was only the second time in his 14 starts that Lucchesi worked on four days’ rest.
NOTEBOOK
• Manny Machado was 2-for-3 Monday night with his 14th homer and a double, although the latter was a sharp grounder that ricocheted off second base umpire Chris Segal into short right. Machado is 13-for-28 (.464) in a six-game hitting streak that has seen his average rise from .238 to .264. During the streak, Machado has three doubles, four home runs, seven RBIs, 12 runs scored and a walk for a .483 on-base percentage and a 1.000 slugging percentage for a 1.483 OPS.
• Kirby Yates picked up his 25th save in 25 opportunities Monday night. His 25 saves before the All-Star break is tied for the second-most in Padres history behind the 26 recorded by Heath Bell in 2001. Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman had 25 saves before the break three times in his career. Yates has yet to yield a run in a save situation this season, giving up 10 hits and six walks with 40 strikeouts in 25 innings for a 0.00 ERA and a 0.64 WHIP.
• Hunter Renfroe is 10-for-25 (.400) over his last six games, raising his batting average from .238 to .257. He has two doubles and five homers during the run with eight RBIs and seven runs scored with two walks for a .444 on-base percentage and a 1.080 slugging percentage for a 1.524 OPS.
• Eric Hosmer was 2-for-3 Monday night in addition to being hit by a pitch. Hosmer has reached base in 24 straight starts and in 39 of his last 40 games. Hosmer has also hit safely in nine of his last 10 games, going 12-for-39 (.308) with three doubles, a triple, five walks, 12 RBIs and eight runs scored for a .386 on-base percentage and a .436 slugging percentage for a .822 OPS.